Monitoring health status to identify and solve community health problems is one of the ten Essential Public Health Services, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The Geary County Health Department has been funded to do just that.
According to Health Department Director Tammy Von Busch, the ESSENCE multi-county regional pilot funding of $10,000 from the CDC and Kansas Department of Health and Environment will assist the Health Department in working with regional partners to monitor community health status. ESSENCE is an acronym for Electronic Surveillance System for Early Notification of Community-based Epidemics. The software enables public health departments at the state and local level to analyze emergency department data submitted by hospitals. The system can track infectious disease and the impact of disasters.
The collaborative project will also include Pottawatomie, Riley, Clay and Dickinson counties, offering an opportunity to expand public health partnerships in the Wildcat Public Health Emergency Preparedness Region and beyond.
Geary County Health Department will facilitate the coordination with local and regional emergency departments, training for public health agencies and partners, and development and dissemination of useful ESSENCE tools to better track the health of the community. Technical assistance and evaluation for the project will be provided by Wichita State University, Center for Public Health Initiatives, Community Institute. This activity is funded by a grant from the CDC.